GLORY DAYS ON THE GREAT LOOP: OUT OF THE SMALL CRAFT CHANNEL ONTO THE BAY

BETTER BE IN THE CHANNEL

DAY 61 TUES. AUG. 2, 2011
AM CLEAR, SUNNY WIND > 5K L60/H75 PM CLOUDY W 15-20K
DEP, KILBEAR 07:50 ARR. WRIGHT’S MARINA, BYNG INLET 1:30
D. 51sm/1007

We left Kilbear Marina early so we could cruise 53 m to the Busterd Islands and spend the afternoon and night at anchor. In order to avoid 2 very narrow passages, Canoe Channel and Hangdog Channel we decided to leave the small craft channel for the open waters of Georgian Bay. We left through Pointe au Baril, which is French for Barrel Point. The point is named for the single barrel that was posted to a rock to mark the safe passage into the channel from Georgian Bay. The wind offshore was very light, which it must be for small craft or you could be in for some nasty waves especially with a west wind. The waves we had were all less than a foot and the trip from Pointe au Baril to Byng Inlet was uneventful and relaxing. In fact we set the auto helm for the Byng Inlet buoy about 12 miles north and each took a 20 min. nap while taking turns at the helm. I heard some other boaters on the marine radio chatting about an upcoming storm, so we got an updated forecast, and sure enough, there were T-storms forecast for the night. Not my favorite kind of weather for anchoring. We called Docker’s Inn and decided to seek out a secure marina for the night, so here we are in Wright’s Marina anticipating some nasty weather. At 5:30 we got together with Ken & Sharon (Docker’s Inn), Carol & Rich (Salt N Sand), the 2 boats we travelled here with, and John & Gloria (Bombay Lady), and Shelly & Mark (Rock Chalk) for Happy Hour. Speaking of Happy Hour, Carole & Rich, from Cape May, NJ brought as their contribution about 1 lb. of Blue Crab fingers. These are the large claws with theshell removed from the teeth back, so all you have to do is grab the toothy end, dip into some sauce, and eat. What a special treat!